Biography
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Noted for his "remarkable tenor" (Isthmus), Wisconsin native Christopher Aaron Smith continues to earn critical and popular acclaim for his work as an opera singer, recitalist, concert soloist, and performer of new music.
Recent opera and theatre credits include King Kaspar in Amahl & The Night Visitors, Larry/Matt in The Face on the Barroom Floor, Pierre in Le Violoneux, Polissard in Les Deux Pêcheurs, and Patachon in Les Deux Aveugles (Boston Metro Opera), Cavaradossi in Tosca (Longwood Opera), and Laurie in Little Women (Stoughton Opera). Mr. Smith has also been featured in countless operatic and musical revues some of which include the Waterfire Gala (Opera Providence/Waterfire Providence), the 7th Annual Summer Concert Series (New England Light Opera), Side by Side by Sondheim (NEC Opera Theater), and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Opera (OperaHub).
In addition to his work on stage, Mr. Smith is active as a recitalist and concert soloist. He has presented numerous recitals in the Boston area and throughout the Midwest some of which include The Songs of Scott Gendel, Songs of Experience, American Opera from A to Z, The Songs of Michael Flanders and Donald Swann, The Complete Folksong Arrangements of Benjamin Britten, and The Songs of Theodore Chanler. In concert, he has appeared as a tenor soloist with such companies as the Boston Russian Chorus, the Masterworks Chorale, the Paul Madore Chorale, and the New Berlin Community Symphony among many others.
A specialist in the new music and contemporary opera repertory, Mr. Smith has premiered compositions by Monica Houghton, Andrew Wilson, Ryan Maguire, Jason Belcher, Jeffrey Brody, and Randal Despommier, has presented the regional premiere of works by Richard Rice, Paul Osterfield, Michael Djupstrom, Zachary Wadsworth, Cherise D. Leiter, Scott Gendel, Daron Aric Hagen, and Henry Mollicone, and is featured on the recording premiere of songs by Jonathon Lovenstein with the composer at the piano. On stage, he has created a multitude of roles including Grant in Lon W. Chaffin’s Grant & Grace, Memory I in Robert J. Bradshaw’s .Gabriel, KeHoTeque in David Edgar Walther’s Antigon, The Ghost of W.H. Auden in Matt Aucoin’s From Sandover, Fox/Mouse in David Walther’s Fables, and Mortimer in David Walther's Edward II. He has also created tenor solos for oratorios and large-scale choral works including Severyn Bruyn's Song of Evolution.
Mr. Smith has earned many vocal scholarships including the New England Conservatory Merit Award, the Harold Whitworth Pierce Provost Scholarship, the Macdowell Music Club Vocal Scholarship, and the Zahn Meistersinger Scholarship. Other awards include two Skylight Opera Theatre Awards for his "unusual dramatic talent, interesting presence, and vivid projection of text and music" and a Milwaukee Music Teachers Association, Inc. Award from the Wisconsin District Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.
He holds a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance from Wartburg College and a Master of Music in vocal performance from the New England Conservatory. He has studied and coached with Patricia Craig, Terry Decima, Jeffrey Brody, Michael Strauss, Timothy Steele, Susan A. Blumer, Timothy Shaindlin, Daniel Gast, Rosemary Gast, David Katz, and Simon Estes.
Recent opera and theatre credits include King Kaspar in Amahl & The Night Visitors, Larry/Matt in The Face on the Barroom Floor, Pierre in Le Violoneux, Polissard in Les Deux Pêcheurs, and Patachon in Les Deux Aveugles (Boston Metro Opera), Cavaradossi in Tosca (Longwood Opera), and Laurie in Little Women (Stoughton Opera). Mr. Smith has also been featured in countless operatic and musical revues some of which include the Waterfire Gala (Opera Providence/Waterfire Providence), the 7th Annual Summer Concert Series (New England Light Opera), Side by Side by Sondheim (NEC Opera Theater), and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Opera (OperaHub).
In addition to his work on stage, Mr. Smith is active as a recitalist and concert soloist. He has presented numerous recitals in the Boston area and throughout the Midwest some of which include The Songs of Scott Gendel, Songs of Experience, American Opera from A to Z, The Songs of Michael Flanders and Donald Swann, The Complete Folksong Arrangements of Benjamin Britten, and The Songs of Theodore Chanler. In concert, he has appeared as a tenor soloist with such companies as the Boston Russian Chorus, the Masterworks Chorale, the Paul Madore Chorale, and the New Berlin Community Symphony among many others.
A specialist in the new music and contemporary opera repertory, Mr. Smith has premiered compositions by Monica Houghton, Andrew Wilson, Ryan Maguire, Jason Belcher, Jeffrey Brody, and Randal Despommier, has presented the regional premiere of works by Richard Rice, Paul Osterfield, Michael Djupstrom, Zachary Wadsworth, Cherise D. Leiter, Scott Gendel, Daron Aric Hagen, and Henry Mollicone, and is featured on the recording premiere of songs by Jonathon Lovenstein with the composer at the piano. On stage, he has created a multitude of roles including Grant in Lon W. Chaffin’s Grant & Grace, Memory I in Robert J. Bradshaw’s .Gabriel, KeHoTeque in David Edgar Walther’s Antigon, The Ghost of W.H. Auden in Matt Aucoin’s From Sandover, Fox/Mouse in David Walther’s Fables, and Mortimer in David Walther's Edward II. He has also created tenor solos for oratorios and large-scale choral works including Severyn Bruyn's Song of Evolution.
Mr. Smith has earned many vocal scholarships including the New England Conservatory Merit Award, the Harold Whitworth Pierce Provost Scholarship, the Macdowell Music Club Vocal Scholarship, and the Zahn Meistersinger Scholarship. Other awards include two Skylight Opera Theatre Awards for his "unusual dramatic talent, interesting presence, and vivid projection of text and music" and a Milwaukee Music Teachers Association, Inc. Award from the Wisconsin District Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions.
He holds a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance from Wartburg College and a Master of Music in vocal performance from the New England Conservatory. He has studied and coached with Patricia Craig, Terry Decima, Jeffrey Brody, Michael Strauss, Timothy Steele, Susan A. Blumer, Timothy Shaindlin, Daniel Gast, Rosemary Gast, David Katz, and Simon Estes.
[7 May 2011]
